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« : February 28, 2006, 08:08:46 AM » |
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Granville Town Clerk Paula Roth won't be running for re-election on Town Meeting day. One of the things she won't miss is the lack of plumbing at the Town Clerk's Office. The structure has a portable toilet. GLENN RUSSELL, Free Press
Call of nature is long distance in Granville
By Matt Sutkoski
Free Press Staff Writer
February 28, 2006
GRANVILLE -- Some days, you never know precisely when, the Granville Town Clerk's Office closes mysteriously for a period of 20 minutes to a half hour.
It all has to do with plumbing, or the lack thereof.
The Granville town office is probably the only one in the state without indoor plumbing, Town Clerk Paula Roth said. When nature calls, a portable toilet is available next to the building. Roth said the facilities strike her as too icky, even if they are cleaned regularly.
"Every Tom, Dick and Harry who's riding their bicycle by or walking by uses it," she said.
After she was elected five years ago, Roth said she was taken aback by the lack of facilities. "When I took the job, I never thought to say 'Do you have a bathroom?'"
When she needs to, Roth closes up shop, drives the couple of miles to her home, then returns to the clerk's office. "Nobody has ever complained," she said. "A couple of times I've had attorneys waiting for me to get back."
Roth is resigning from office on Town Meeting Day, but that has nothing to do with the accommodations. She's bought a house in neighboring Hancock, making her ineligible for elected positions in Granville.
Roth's predecessor, Wendy Eramo, said the lack of a bathroom was a factor in her decision not to seek re-election five years ago. Eramo works at a school, one with plenty of functioning plumbing. Eramo wonders why no bathroom has been installed.
"It's long overdue. I don't know why we are allowing it to continue," she said.
A lack of money and a lack of buildings in town are the reasons for the lack of a bathroom, Granville Selectboard Chairman Norman Arseneault said. "We've looked at a number of ways to either renovate that building or look at other spots in town, but nothing has come to fruition," he said.
At least there have been some improvements to the building, which is about the size of a one-car garage, Roth said. The roof's been fixed, so there's no longer water on her desk and in her computer when she arrives at work after a rainy night.
The next Granville town clerk will be nominated from the floor March 7. At least two people have expressed interest in the job, Arseneault said.
Roth said bathroom or no bathroom, she would stay on the job if not for her change in residency. "I would love to stay town clerk under these conditions," she said.
Contact Matt Sutkoski at 660-1846 or msutkosk@bfp.burlingtonfreepress.com |
